That:

a)    The re-commissioning of the Care in Your Home Partnership be approved, to commence through a maximum of eight locality contracts from 1 May 2027 for a period of up to ten years, at a maximum service value of £219.7million; and

b)    Delegated authority be granted to the Corporate Director Community Wellbeing to approve all operational and contractual decisions, including a maximum of eight locality contract awards, extensions and variations, for the full duration of the contract term, within the approved service budget and in accordance with the council’s Contract Procedure Rules.

1.              Extend the existing home care frameworks: This option is not recommended.  The current frameworks have already been extended, pursuant to 72(1)(e) Public Contracts Regulations 2015, in order to align with the commencement of the new Care in Your Home (CIYH) Partnership, therefore a further extension is not required.

2.              Bring the service in-house: This option is not recommended.  The scale of service delivery required across Herefordshire is simply not achievable by one provider, hence a locality provision model, as referenced in item 15 below.  Even with TUPE arrangements in place, it would be immensely challenging for the council to successfully deliver all home care and D2A services internally.

3.              Do nothing: This option is not recommended.  The current home care frameworks end on 30 April 2027, although this can be extended up for to an additional four months.  Once the current frameworks end, although current call-offs (packages of care) would continue, any new packages of care would have to be individually negotiated with providers.  This would not be compliant with our statutory duties and responsibilities under the Care Act or the Procurement Act.  Therefore, the council must ensure a new service is available from 1 May 2027 (1 September at the latest) to ensure it can continue to support residents to remain safe and independent in their own homes and communities for longer, delaying the need for more formal health and social care interventions.